JPH11307A - Endoscope - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To secure good insertability of an inserted part while keeping the part hard. even for a case of the large intestines with sharply curved parts, and to enhance controllability. SOLUTION: Cam grooves 52a, 52b have smooth groove shapes (smooth spiral shapes), their rising angles changing from α to βtoward a control part along the longitudinal direction of an inserted part (α<β). The cam groove 52a is shaped to increase in its rising angle (β) in the longitudinal direction of the inserted part to reduce the distance traveled by a pin 54 in the horizontal direction (i.e., pitch of the cam groove 52a). Therefore, a hardness adjustment knob can be rotated at small load, with the result that the maximum amount of power needed during control is reduced.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an endoscope, and more particularly, to an endoscope having a hardness adjusting portion for adjusting the hardness of a flexible portion.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, by inserting an elongated insertion portion into a body cavity, a site to be inspected in the body cavity can be observed without the need for an incision, and a therapeutic treatment can be performed using a treatment tool if necessary. Endoscopes that can be used have become widely used.
The insertion portion of the endoscope has flexibility so that it can be inserted even into a bent insertion path, but due to this flexibility, the orientation of the distal end side relative to the hand side is not determined. , It may be difficult to introduce in the target direction.

In order to deal with this, for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No.
Japanese Patent No. 91971 discloses a hardness varying means (flexibility varying means) comprising a coil pipe and a wire in an insertion portion of an endoscope.
Are disclosed. According to the configuration of this conventional example, the operator performing the endoscopy can adjust the flexibility of the insertion portion with a simple operation, and can easily insert the insertion portion into a curved path such as the large intestine. be able to.

[0004]

However, in Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. Hei 5-91971, when the hardness varying means is operated, the cam groove has a linear shape, so that the operating force increases as the hardness increases. And the operability is poor.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and is applicable to the case of a large intestine having a sharp bend.
It is an object of the present invention to provide an endoscope that can secure good insertion of an insertion portion in a hardened state and can improve operability.

[0006]

An endoscope according to the present invention comprises: an insertion portion having a flexible portion; a variable hardness device capable of adjusting the hardness of the flexible portion disposed in the insertion portion; and a variable hardness device. In an endoscope having an operation unit having a cam mechanism for operating, by changing the pitch of the cam groove of the cam mechanism in the middle, even in the case of a large intestine having a sharply bent portion, the endoscope is hardened. In this state, it is possible to ensure good insertion of the insertion portion in the inserted state and improve operability.

[0007]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIGS. 1 to 5 relate to a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing a schematic configuration of an endoscope apparatus, and FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of the endoscope of FIG. FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing a section taken along line AA and a section taken along line BB of FIG. 2, FIG. 4 is a view showing a specific example of the cam body of FIG. 2, and FIG. It is explanatory drawing explaining an effect | action.

(Structure) As shown in FIG.
Is an electronic endoscope 2 of the present embodiment having a built-in imaging means.
And a light source device 3 for supplying illumination light to the electronic endoscope 2.
And a signal processing device 4 that performs signal processing on an image pickup signal output from the electronic endoscope 2 and a color monitor 5 that displays a video signal output from the signal processing device 4 on a screen.

The electronic endoscope 2 has an elongated insertion section 6, a wide operation section 7 connected to the rear end side of the insertion section 6, and extends from the side of the operation section 7. Universal cable 8
A connector 9 is provided at an end of the universal cable 8, and the connector 9 can be detachably connected to the light source device 3.

The insertion portion 6 is provided with a hard distal end 11 from the distal end side.
And a flexible portion 12 formed at the rear end of the distal end portion 11 and capable of bending, and a flexible portion 13 formed at the rear end of the curved portion 12 and having a long length and flexibility. The rear end of 13 is connected to the front end of the operation unit 7. This soft part 1
On the outer periphery of the rear end of 3, there is provided a bending preventing member 10 having a tapering shape and having a function of preventing bending.

A light guide 14 composed of a fiber bundle having flexibility and having a function of transmitting illumination light is inserted into the insertion portion 6, the operation portion 7, and the universal cable 8 so as to protrude from the connector 9. By connecting the fixed light guide connector 15 to the light source device 3, the illumination light of the lamp 16 in the light source device 3 is collected by the lens 17 and supplied to the end face of the light guide connector 15.

The illumination light transmitted by the light guide 14 is emitted forward from a distal end surface fixed to an illumination window of the distal end portion 11 to illuminate a subject such as an affected part. The illuminated subject forms an optical image at an image forming position by an objective lens 18 attached to an observation window provided at the distal end portion 11 adjacent to the illumination window. At this image forming position, a charge-coupled device (abbreviated as CCD) 19 is arranged as an image sensor having a function of performing photoelectric conversion, and converts an optical image into an electric signal.

The CCD 19 is connected to one end of a signal cable 21. The signal cable 21 is pushed through the insertion portion 6 and the like, and the rear end is connected to the electric connector 22 of the connector 9 and connected to the electric connector 22. Connected to the signal processing device 4 via an external cable 23. By applying the CCD drive signal generated by the drive circuit 24 in the signal processing device 4 to the CCD 19, the photoelectrically converted image signal is read out and input to the signal processing circuit 25 in the signal processing device 4, Performs processing to convert to a standard video signal. This standard video signal is sent to the color monitor 5
The image formed on the CCD 19 is displayed in color in the endoscope image display area 5a.

The curved portion 1 provided adjacent to the tip portion 11
Reference numeral 2 denotes a ring-shaped bending piece 26 which is rotatably connected to an adjacent bending piece 26 at a position corresponding to up, down, left and right with rivets or the like. The rear end of the bending wire 27 fixed to the operation unit 7 is connected to a sprocket 28 in the operation unit 7, and a bending operation knob 29 for performing a bending operation is attached to a shaft of the sprocket 28 (in FIG. 1, for simplicity). , Up and down or right and left directions only).

By rotating the bending operation knob 29, one of the pair of bending wires 27 arranged vertically or horizontally is pulled, and the other is relaxed and pulled. The bending portion 12 can be bent toward the 27 side.

The operating section 7 is provided with a grip portion 31 in front of the position where the bending operation knob 29 is provided. The operation of the bending operation knob 29 can be performed with a finger).

A treatment tool insertion port 32 is provided on the front end side of the grip portion 31. By inserting a treatment tool from the treatment tool insertion port 32, an internal treatment tool channel 33 (see FIG. 3) is provided. Then, the distal end side of the treatment tool is projected from the channel outlet of the distal end portion 11 so that a treatment such as polyp resection can be performed.

In this embodiment, for example, a cylindrical hardness adjusting knob (or a flexible adjusting knob) for performing a hardness adjusting operation (or a flexibility adjusting operation) is provided at a front end of the operating portion 7 adjacent to the buckling member 10. A hardness adjusting knob 34 is provided, and by operating the hardness adjusting knob 34, a hardness changing means (or a flexibility changing means) arranged in the flexible portion 13 is formed. The hardness (or flexibility) of the flexible portion 13 can be changed via a wire (hereinafter simply referred to as a wire) 35 and a hardness changing coil (hereinafter simply referred to as a coil) 36.

FIG. 2 shows a more specific structure of the insertion section 6 and the operation section 7 of the electronic endoscope 2. A wire 35 for applying a force when the hardness adjustment knob 34 is operated to the coil 36 as a compressive force is provided in a soft tube 37 forming an outer skin of the soft portion 13.
And the tightly wound coil 3 through which the wire 35 is inserted.
6 are provided.

The distal end of a wire 35 projecting from the distal end of the coil 36 is firmly fixed to the hard connecting tube 38 connecting the bending portion 12 and the flexible portion 13 by brazing or the like. The connection pipe 38 is fixed to the rearmost bending piece 26. Alternatively, the rearmost bending piece 26 may also function as the connection pipe 38. The bending piece 26 including the connection pipe 38 is covered with an elastic outer skin 39 such as a rubber tube.

The tip of the coil 36 is firmly fixed to the wire 35 by brazing or the like at an intermediate position slightly behind the tip of the wire 35. The proximal end of the coil 36 is a coil stopper 4 disposed inside the front end of the operation unit 7.
When it hits 0, the movement and rotation to the rear side from this position are restricted (prevented).

The wire 35 pushed through the coil 36 extends rearward through the hole of the coil stopper 40, and the wire 35 is movable with respect to the coil 36. Note that the coil 36 does not rotate significantly.

The coil stopper 40 is fixed to the rear end base 41 for fixing the rear end of the flexible tube 37 to the operation section 7 with screws 42. The rear end base 41 is fixed with screws 44 near the front end of a cylindrical tube 43 arranged on the outer periphery thereof. On the other hand, a wire stopper 45 is firmly fixed to an end on the hand side of the wire 35, that is, a rear end by brazing or the like.

Between the coil stopper 40 and the wire stopper 45, there is disposed a pulling member 46 movable in the front-rear direction. The pulling member 46 is attached to the moving ring 47 so that the wire 35 passes through the groove 48. Fixed.

That is, as shown in FIG. 3B, a pulling member 46 having a groove 48 for passing the wire 35 in the radial direction is fixed to the inner peripheral surface of the cylindrical moving ring 47 by the screw 49.

This moving ring 47 is movable in the axial direction (front-back direction) inside the cylindrical tube 43. Accordingly, when the traction member 46 moves rearward together with the moving ring 47, the traction member 46 comes into contact with the wire stopper 45 as shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. Further, by performing an operation of moving the traction member 46 rearward, the wire stopper 45 is also moved rearward.

When the wire stopper 45 is not moved rearward, the coil 36 whose rearward movement is restricted by the coil stopper 40 is in the most flexible state, that is, in the soft state with the lowest bending hardness. is there.

On the other hand, when the wire stopper 45 moves rearward and the rear end of the wire 35 also moves rearward at the same time, the coil stopper 40 relatively exerts a compressive force for pressing the coil 36 forward.

That is, a compressive force is applied to the coil 36 by applying a force for moving the rear end of the wire 35 to the rear side, and the elasticity of the coil 36 having elasticity is reduced by the compressive force. In other words, it is possible to set a hard state in which the hardness that hardly bends (more precisely, the hardness against bending) is high. In this case, the magnitude of the compressive force applied to the coil 35 can be changed in accordance with the amount of rearward movement of the traction member 46, and therefore, its flexibility (magnitude of hardness).
Can be changed.

A cam cylinder 51 covers the outside of the cylindrical tube 43. The cam cylinder 51 has helically provided cam grooves 52a and 52b at two opposing positions of the cylinder. The cylindrical tube 43 is also provided with a long hole 53 in the longitudinal direction. The moving ring 47 has two pins 54 that move together with the moving ring 47.
It is fixed with a screw portion through 2a or 52b and a long hole 53 outside thereof.

The length of the elongated hole 53 is set so as to cover the rear end of the wire 35 or the moving range of the wire stopper 45 (reference numeral E in FIG. 2).

The hardness adjusting knob 34 is fixed to the outer side of the cam cylinder 51 by a plurality of circumferentially located pins 55. That is, the hardness adjustment knob 34 is formed with a pin hole that reaches the cam cylinder body 51 inside the hardness adjustment knob 34, the pin 55 is fitted therein, and the hardness adjustment knob 34 is closed with the filler 56.

The front end of the hardness adjusting knob 34 abuts against an annular contact member 57, and its forward movement is restricted. The contact member 57 is disposed outside the vicinity of the front end of the cylindrical tube 43, and is fixed to the outer periphery of a support member 58 that supports the rear end of the buckling member 10 with screws 59.

On the rear end side of the hardness adjusting knob 34, the inner peripheral surface of the front end of the gripping cylinder 61 is fitted to the outer peripheral surface of the cam cylinder 51, and the outer peripheral surface of the front end of the gripping cylinder 61. The surface is fitted to the notched inner peripheral surface at the rear end of the hardness adjusting knob 34. In other words, the hardness adjustment knob 34 is slidably in contact with the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical tube 43 via the cam cylinder 51 in a state where the movement in the front-rear direction is restricted, and is rotatably disposed (around the cylindrical tube 43). ing.

As described above, the hardness adjusting knob 34 can be rotated, but the screw 59 is rotated so that the contact member 57 does not rotate.
It is fixed at.

An O-ring 62 is provided between the inner peripheral surface of the front end of the hardness adjusting knob 34 and the outer peripheral surface of the cylindrical tube 43 facing the inside thereof.
Are arranged, and the inner peripheral surface of the front end of the hardness adjustment knob 34 is pressed against the O-ring 62. Also, between the outer peripheral surface near the rear end of the cam cylinder 51 and the inner peripheral surface of the gripping frame 61 fitted to the outer peripheral surface, for example, an O-ring 63 is provided in a peripheral groove provided on the cam body 51 side. Is housed, and the inner peripheral surface of the gripper frame 61 is pressed against the O-ring 63.

As shown in FIG. 4A, the cam grooves 52a,
52b has a smooth groove shape (smooth spiral shape), and its rising angle with respect to the longitudinal direction of the insertion portion 6 changes from α to β in the middle toward the operation portion 7 in the middle.

Here, the relationship between α and β is α <β. Further, the portions where the rising angle changes may be connected by a smooth curve.

Note that, as shown in FIG.
All of 2a and 52b may have a curved shape.

Further, instead of the structure shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 4C, for example, there is a recess 64a in the middle of the cam groove 52b, or the recess 64 is provided at an end of the cam groove 52b.
b, and the pins 5
When “4” is set, a click feeling may be given to the operator. Further, the rising angle may be increased stepwise (α <β <γ...).

As shown in FIG. 2, an insertion port frame 65 for forming the treatment instrument insertion port 32 at a front position adjacent to the grip portion 31.
Is provided. The insertion port frame 65 is connected to a branch member 67 that branches into the treatment instrument insertion port 32 side and the suction conduit 66 side inside the operation unit 7.
The treatment instrument channel 3 provided in the insertion portion 6 is provided at the front end of the
3 are connected to each other by a connection portion 68.

The branch member 67 is fixed to the cylindrical tube 43 with screws. The rear end of the cylindrical tube 43 is connected to the outside 60 of the frame to which the bending operation mechanism of the operation unit 7 is attached by a screw. The cylindrical tube 43 does not rotate even when the hardness adjustment knob 34 is rotated.

As shown in FIG. 3A, various built-in components are arranged in the insertion section 6. That is, the four curved wires 27 arranged at positions corresponding to the left and right under the ground,
Two signal cables 21 arranged in the vicinity of the center, two light guides 14 arranged in the upper part of the center, a treatment instrument channel 33 arranged in the lower part, a coil 36 and a wire 35 arranged in the left part, An air supply tube 69 for supplying air and a water supply tube 70 for supplying water, which are arranged adjacent to this, are built in.

A built-in component as shown in FIG. 3B is also arranged in the operation unit 7. Figure 3 shows the layout of this built-in object.
It is almost the same as (A).

(Operation) The procedure for inserting the electronic endoscope 2 into the large intestine will be described with reference to FIG. Generally, FIG.
In the state where the insertion portion 6 is soft as shown in FIG. 7A, the insertion portion 6 is inserted through the descending colon 93 so as to follow the sigmoid colon 92 winding from the anus 91 to the vicinity of the spleen curve 94. Therefore, the insertion portion 6 is pulled substantially while being twisted so as to be in a substantially straight state. Accordingly, as shown in FIG. 5 (B), the meandering portion of the sigmoid colon 92 is shortened so as to be folded, and becomes substantially straight. Here, the hardness adjusting knob 34 is operated to harden the coil 36 and the insertion portion 6. By doing so, the operation of the flexible portion 13 at hand can be easily transmitted to the distal end, and in that state, the transverse colon 95 and the liver curve 9
7. The ascending colon 96 is hardened, and the tip reaches the deep part of the cecum 98 as shown in FIG.

Next, the operation of the characteristic portion in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. When the hardness adjustment knob 34 is rotated in the direction indicated by the reference symbol C in FIG. 4A (the left side in FIG. 4A is shown as the insertion portion side), the solid line in FIG. As shown in FIG.
(Relative to) moves in the cam groove 52a as shown by the arrow D. Since the pin 54 passes through the elongated hole 53 formed in the longitudinal direction of the cylindrical tube 43, the moving member 47 moves rearward along the elongated hole 53 together with the pin 54. That is, the pin 54 actually moves in the horizontal direction (right side) in FIG.

With this movement, the traction member 46 fixed to the moving member 47 also moves rearward. When the traction member moves from the position indicated by the solid line in FIG. 2 to the position indicated by the two-dot chain line in FIG.

Further, by rotating the variable hardness knob 34 and moving the traction member 46 backward, a tensile force acts on the wire 35 and a compressive force is applied to the coil 36 to harden the coil 36, thereby The flexible portion 13 can be hardened.

When the pin 54 moves in the direction of the cam groove 52a, a tensile force starts to be applied to the wire 35, and as a repulsive force, the pin 54 is pulled toward the distal end side in the longitudinal direction of the insertion portion. The hardness increases as the hardness adjustment knob 34 is rotated in the direction indicated by the reference character C.

When the hardness adjustment knob 34 is started to rotate in the direction indicated by reference character C, the pin 54 is pulled toward the distal end side in the longitudinal direction of the insertion portion. However, since the compressive force applied to the coil 36 is small at the beginning of rotation, the tensile force generated at the pin 54 is also small. Therefore, due to the repulsive force corresponding to the pulling force, even if the shape of the cam groove 52a is small in the rising angle (α) with respect to the longitudinal direction of the insertion portion 6, the force for rotating the variable hardness knob 34 is small. The pin 54 can be pulled toward the insertion portion longitudinal direction operation portion side (as a result, the moving distance of the pin 54 in the horizontal direction (that is, the pitch of the cam grooves 52a).
Can be longer). However, as the variable hardness knob 34 continues to rotate, the compressive force applied to the coil 36 increases.

On the other hand, by increasing the rising angle (β) of the shape of the cam groove 52 a with respect to the longitudinal direction of the insertion portion 6, the moving distance of the pin 54 in the horizontal direction (that is, the cam groove 52 a Pitch) becomes shorter. for that reason,
The hardness adjustment knob 34 can be rotated with a small load, and the maximum force during operation is reduced.

When the rising angle is small (α)
In addition, since the moving distance of the pin 54 in the horizontal direction (that is, the pitch of the cam groove 52a) can be increased, depending on the position of the rising angle changing portion (depending on the combination),
There is a possibility that the total rotation stroke for rotating the hardness adjustment knob 34 can be shortened.

Note that, as shown in FIG.
If the portions 2a and 52b are all curved and the portion where the rising angle changes is a smooth curved shape, the amount of operation force is continuous.

(Effect) As described above, in the electronic endoscope 2 of the present embodiment, by changing the rising angle in the shape of the cam groove 52a, the moving distance of the pin 54 in the horizontal direction (ie, the movement of the cam groove 52a). Since the pitch) is changed, even when the hardness of the coil 36 and the insertion portion 6 is increased, the operation force of the hardness adjustment knob 34 can be reduced, and the case of a large intestine having a sharply bent portion can be reduced. In addition, it is possible to ensure good insertability of the insertion portion in a hardened state and improve operability.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view illustrating a cam mechanism according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

Since the second embodiment is almost the same as the first embodiment, only different points will be described, and the same components will be denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.

(Configuration) FIG. 6 shows the shape of the cam grooves 52a and 52b of the cam cylinder 51 in the present cam mechanism. The cam grooves 52a and 52b are two-section cams, one of which is a cam groove 5
2a, the other is indicated by a cam groove 52b.

The cam groove 52a and the cam groove 52b have the same shape, and are provided at symmetrical positions such that one is rotated by 180 degrees with respect to the axis of the cam cylinder 51 and the other is overlapped. .

In FIG. 6, the cam groove 52a and the cam groove 52b have a smooth groove shape (smooth spiral shape).
With respect to the longitudinal direction of the insertion portion 6, the rising angle is changed from α to β in the middle of the operation portion 7 in the middle.
Note that the relationship between α and β is α <β.

At the initial position where the rising angle is α, a horizontal portion (portion indicated by reference numeral P in FIG. 6) is formed on the side of the cam groove 52a where the cam groove 52a is inserted. The initial position is located at the horizontal portion and the portion where the rising angle of the cam groove 52a is α.

At this time, even if the insertion portion 6 forms an appropriate loop, the horizontal portion (the portion indicated by the symbol P in FIG. 6) becomes a kind of play, and the play is caused by the pin 54 being the cam groove 52a.
This keeps a distance that is not restricted by the operation section side in the longitudinal direction of the insertion section.

The other structure is the same as that of the first embodiment.

(Operation) When the insertion section 6 is inserted into the large intestine, the insertion is often performed while forming a loop in the flexible section 13. When the loop is formed in the flexible portion 13, the wire 35 is pulled, so that the coil 36 becomes harder. Therefore, there is a problem that the hardness of the insertion portion 6 changes against the intention of the operator.

However, in the cam cylinder body 51 of the present embodiment as shown in FIG. 6, the initial position of the pin 54 is set at the horizontal portion (in FIG.
), The pin 54 fitted in the cam groove 52a even when the flexible portion 13 forms a loop has a horizontal portion (horizontal and horizontal) on the insertion portion side of the cam groove 52a. The portion indicated by the symbol P in FIG. 6) plays and is not restricted by the cam groove 52a.

The other operations are the same as in the first embodiment.

(Effect) Therefore, in the present embodiment, the first
In addition to the effects of the embodiment, the horizontal portion (the portion indicated by the reference numeral P in FIG. 6) provided on the insertion portion side of the cam groove 52a plays, and the hardness is contrary to the intention of the operator. It is possible to improve safety without changing.

[Supplementary Notes] (Supplementary note 1) An insertion portion having a flexible portion, a hardness changing means capable of adjusting the hardness of the soft portion disposed in the insertion portion, and a cam mechanism for operating the hardness changing means. An endoscope comprising: an operation unit having: a pitch of a cam groove of the cam mechanism is changed on the way.

(Additional Item 2) The endoscope according to Additional Item 1, wherein the pitch of the cam groove is at least partially curved.

(Additional Item 3) The endoscope according to Additional Item 1, wherein a horizontal portion substantially parallel to the longitudinal direction of the insertion portion is provided at an end of the cam groove.

(Additional Item 4) The endoscope according to Additional Item 1, wherein the pitch of the cam groove is changed stepwise.

(Additional Item 5) The endoscope according to Additional Item 4, wherein the pitch of the cam groove is increased stepwise.

[0073]

As described above, according to the endoscope of the present invention, since the pitch of the cam groove of the cam mechanism for operating the hardness varying means is changed in the middle, the endoscope has a sharply bent portion. Even in the case of a large intestine, there is an effect that a good insertion property of the insertion portion in a hardened state can be ensured and operability can be improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing a schematic configuration of an endoscope apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram showing a configuration of the endoscope in FIG. 1;

3 is a sectional view showing a section taken along line AA and a section taken along line BB of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a specific example of the cam body of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the operation of the endoscope in FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view illustrating a cam mechanism according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Endoscope apparatus 2 ... Electronic endoscope 3 ... Light source apparatus 4 ... Signal processing apparatus 5 ... Color monitor 6 ... Insertion part 7 ... Operation part 8 ... Universal cable 9 ... Connector 10 ... Bending prevention member 11 ... Tip part 12 ... Bending part 13 ... Flexible part 14 ... Light guide 16 ... Lamp 18 ... Objective lens 19 ... CCD 21 ... Signal cable 25 ... Signal processing circuit 26 ... Bending piece 27 ... Bending wire 29 ... Bending operation knob 31 ... Grip part 32 ... Treatment Tool insertion port 33 ... Treatment tool channel 34 ... Hardness adjusting knob 35 ... Hardness changing wire (wire) 36 ... Hardness changing coil (coil) 37 ... Soft tube 38 ... Connecting tube 40 ... Coil stopper 41 ... Rear end base 42, 44 ... screw 43 ... cylindrical pipe 45 ... wire stopper 46 ... pulling member 47 ... moving ring 48 ... groove 51 ... cam cylinder 52a, 52b ... cam groove 62 , 63 ... O-ring

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An insertion part having a flexible part, a hardness varying means capable of adjusting the hardness of the flexible part disposed in the insertion part, and an operation part having a cam mechanism for operating the hardness varying means. In the endoscope provided, the pitch of the cam groove of the cam mechanism was changed on the way.